APPLE VALLEY — After operating several businesses in the Victor Valley for nearly 50 years, a popular community leader has passed away.

Mary Parker, who opened the first of five businesses with her late husband Wayne, died on Friday at the age of 84, according to her daughter, Charlotte Roddy.

“My parents moved to Apple Valley on Valentine’s Day 1967 and began opening their businesses, all in the Village of Apple Valley,” Roddy said. “They opened Parker’s Garage, and Color and Curl Beauty Salon.”

Roddy said her folks moved to the South, her mother’s “roots,” for a short period of time before coming back to reopen the garage, and open Parker’s Hairum Beauty Salon and Parker’s Properties.

“My parents made sure that the garage was built right behind the salon,” Roddy said. “This way, the ladies could get their hair done while getting an oil change at the same time.”

Roddy said her mother, who received her Real estate license in 1979, opened Parker’s Properties with only $250 in her pocket.

“Her grandchildren, Eric Hunley and Kristin Roddy, run the property management department,” Charlotte Roddy said. “Her grandchildren are old enough to work there and that’s what we’re hoping for.”

Charlotte Roddy said her brother, Leslie Wayne Parker, took over the garage and renamed it Parker Motor Sports after their father passed away 17 years ago.

One of Mary Parker’s last ventures was the opening of her Southern Comfort antique shop.

“My parents packed up everything and moved to the High Desert from Huntington Beach,” Charlotte Roddy said. “They wanted to make a better life for their kids and that is just what they did.”

Charlotte Roddy said her parents were more than just business owners, but “were people who poured their hearts and lives into others in the community and touched the lives of thousands.”

After dense fog caused a 100-vehicle accident in the Cajon Pass in 1992 that killed one and injured almost four dozen people, the Parkers helped raise enough money to care for families affected.

“From generation to generation, my parents were shining examples that taught us how to give to the community,” Charlotte Roddy said. “My mom will always be remembered as a loving, kind, successful, fun and compassionate woman.”